


Good Things Comes to Those Who Wait

by TrepidationChance



Category: Howl's Moving Castle - All Media Types, Soul Eater
Genre: Black Star is Calcifer, F/M, Fluff, Gen, Howl centric, Howl's Moving Castle AU, Hurt/Comfort, Maka centric, Maka is Howl, Medusa is the Witch, Soul is Sophie, Spirit is an idiot, Went too far I think, sorry - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-23
Updated: 2017-12-23
Packaged: 2019-02-18 22:41:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13109997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrepidationChance/pseuds/TrepidationChance
Summary: Howl!Maka and Sophie!Soul, with Black Star being the only star.From Maka's POV, along her timeline.





	Good Things Comes to Those Who Wait

**Author's Note:**

  * For [millieashford](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=millieashford).



> This is a Secret Santa for one of my old friends, MillieAshford!!  
> I hope you like it..... (((I'm sorry for many things)))

Maka looks up to the sky and sees **magic**.

The falling stars streak across the sky like strokes of iridescent paint, colouring the dark night in shifting hues of pinks and greens. They remind her of the time she visited the north to see the Lights. It was no sorcery, but the cold and frost that interacted with the magnetic field of the world that had brought life to the sky that night.

She remembers, from a book she stole from Papa once, that stars are celestial bodies made up of gas and dust, held together by its own gravity. They are epic masses, woven into a blanket for the sky. The threads are strung into tapestries, preserving stories whispered to children as the moon rises. These balls of plasma and matter hang in space like the mobiles over her bed, but the beings skimming across the lake are anything but puppets. They are free, living a thousand lives and soaring over the horizon, only to perish in a cloud of light in front of her eyes. This is _glorious_ ; both a beautiful and devastating sight.

Her magic are party tricks compared to this. _This_ is her future, her dreams, her love, her _Mama_ …

“You. Do you want power?”

She hears a small murmur. Looking up, she sees a star falling, falling, falling.

“Yes” she whispers.

“Then catch me.”

Maka walks forward instinctively, arms outstretched. She catches it, and it bursts into flames in her hands. It does not burn.

“I am Blackstar, now the last of the Star Clan,” the voice booms in her ears, “and I thank you for saving me. In return, I shall give you the power you deserve.”

She smiles. Finally.

“Swallow me and let me take your heart.”

She frowns.

“What?!” She exclaims. “Why?!”

“I need it.”

“Explain yourself.”

She hears a sigh. “I am all but a flame. For my survival, I need fuel, and your heart is an excellent choice.”

“So you’re going to eat my heart and kill me.”

“No!” yells Black Star. “I’m going to _use_ your heart to keep myself alive and you’ll be able to use _me_ however you want!”

Maka pauses.

“And no one will know?”

“No, not even if we want them to.”

She smirks. Perfect.

Raising her hands up to her mouth, she inhales the flame, feeling it tickle her throat. She swallows.

**Thump.**

**Thump.**

**Thump.**

Her chest feels tight, hot, _pain-_

She clenches her teeth, clutching at her shirt and staggers, cursing herself for _falling for a stupid trick_ but then feels something swelling out of her chest. She grasps at it, feeling it flutter in her palms. She looks down to see small beady eyes staring back at her, and a smile cracks on her face.

She’s alive.

She’s lighter, stronger, _better_ -

“MAKA! BLACK STAR!” She fumbles with Black Star in panic. Did Papa’s men find her? How are you meant to hide a fire??

Pulling Black Star to her chest, Maka turns around to find a young man with snow white hair and bleeding eyes. She finds herself drowning in a swamp of emotions; desperation, grief, confusion, hurt, and....

She does not know what else is there, only that it floods his voice as he speaks again.

“It’s Soul! Wait for me!” The ground is gaping underneath his feet, and is starting to pull him in. “I promise I’ll come back for you! Wait for me in the future-” He is then enveloped, and gone. She feels herself freeze.

Someone knew about her star.

* * *

She missed those red eyes.

She held onto the man’s promise, despite not seeing him in the twelve years it took for her to realise the hidden truth in his words. Black Star was a horrible companion. He constantly talked himself up whilst putting her down, blowing up his ego like a hot air balloon. Of course, she was finally able to attend the Academy and graduate with flying colours, but knowing it wasn’t due to _her_ magic made her cringe in disgust every time she saw her certificate. So, she left it to hang on a dart board while she went and searched the lands for Soul, exploring the world outside the cage Papa had made.

She slowly learnt to wean off the exhilarating magic Black Star offered. She no longer was trying to impress anyone anymore, now that no one knew who she was. Maka wanted to grow her own strength instead of borrowing it.

Hopefully, Mama would finally be proud of her.

She found a witch within the Wastes, a land filled with smog and the lost, who offered her guidance. She learnt ancient magic, excelling at the arcana she never knew existed - the history and sorcery hidden from her, no doubt - and thought she had finally found someone who recognised her for her own merit. Then Medusa found out about Black Star.

She ran.

Maka built wards, found artefacts, wore charms; all to get away from her greedy hands. Not many things scared her, but remembering the chaos in Medusa’s eyes always sent chills down her back. She constantly moved around, unable to stay still when the witch was out there, looking for her star. Black Star was now permanently stuck in the fireplace, surrounded by her spells and barriers. Of course, she could lift him out whenever, but never would she let someone touch him again. The feeling of her heart being squeezed was… unpleasant, to say the least.

She thought she could continue this routine, of moving and running, but her pantry said otherwise. Her coin purse too. So she stayed for the first time since she left Papa. She set up shop in a quaint town, Porthaven, selling whatever she could bare to part with, hoping no one would notice her.

Someone did though, of course.

A young girl was perusing through an old collection of Maka’s trinkets when she noticed an amulet she had added to the pile was actually still imbued with her magic. Maka pocketed it immediately, but caught the sharp eyes of the potential customer. Tsubaki, the young lady, begged to be taken in. She was fascinated with the world of magic they lived in but frustrated with the limits of her hometown. Maka could see herself in her, and thought back to Mama, who taught her the first spells she ever knew; to Papa, who made her the earrings she always wore; to Stein, who she would never be able to live up to with his prowess in the arts; to Medu-

She gained a student.

With Tsubaki’s patience and understanding, she took an alias. Then she took two, three, and many more until she felt free.

She _was_ free.

Which was why she flew from the Wastes to Market Chipping. Probably not the best idea, but she had woken up late and desperately wanted - no, _needed_ the freshly baked bread of Cesari’s. Tsubaki had also written up a list of groceries, which she planned to start on after her warm, toasty breakfast. Walking down the main street, she spotted the bakery and rushed up to it, only to catch sight of black tendrils squirming in the shadows.

**Medusa.**

Maka cursed herself. Stupid, stupid, stupid!

She should have known. How long has it been since she’s last moved?! It must have been months by now, and this is what she got for it. She quickly ducked into a nearby alleyway, dodging all the bystanders cheering for the war. She scoffed at them. A war over a missing princess? Why must Papa be so childish.

Before she could disappear through one of her secret passages - one of her many contingency plans - a flash of white walked past her. She froze. No…

She scrambled after it, and saw the back of a young man, with snow white hair, walking away from her. Could it be?!

He turned a corner, and Maka immediately chased after him, because _it’s been twelve years where have you been this whole tim-_

He was surrounded.

“Lost your way, you rat?”

Two soldiers were leaning over him, smirking as they looked him up and down.

“No, I’m fine.” The man’s bored voice echoed in the alleyway.

“On your way home for tea time, huh?” The soldier continued. “Not joining us, I see.”

“No thank you. I have things to do.”

“What could a short rat like you do anyway?” The other soldier asked, sneering at him.

“How old are you? You live around here?” The first soldier asked.

“Just let me pass!”

“Judging from your lack of whiskers, you’re probably too young” He went on.

“How adorable, he’s getting angry.” The other said.

That’s it.

“Sirs, I do believe he just asked you to let him pass.” Maka said, walking up to the three men. The white haired man looked back at her, and she froze.

Where were his red eyes?

_Who are you?_

“Who are you?!” The first soldier said.

“I’m with him.” She replied. “Now scram.”

With a lift of her hand, she waved them off, whisking them into the air and out of the way. She could hear their confusion and panic echo along the empty alleyway save for her and the white haired man without red eyes.

He looked alien to her, dissimilar to the man in her vague memory but close enough to squeeze her chest tightly, reminding her of the promise, _his_ promise; to wait for him until he came back-

“Umm…”

She blinked. Oh. How long had she been staring for?

“Thanks, for that. They always seem to take it personally, me being…” The man gestured to himself. “...you know, not being a soldier…”

Maka shook her head. “It’s all a farce anyways, it’ll pass after a few days.”

The man furrowed his eyebrows. “I don’t think that’s how wars work, Ms…?”

“I don’t care how they work or not; they’re stupid.”

“Oh.”

Maka paused. “I don’t mean that wars are stupid! No, that would disrespect those who have perished in one. It’s the people who make it happen, like Pa-” She paused again. “Oh, nevermind.”

Maka nodded, and the man nodded too.

Silence.

“So.” Maka said. “Where are you heading off to?”

The man coughed. “Oh, um. I’m just going to Evan’s. You know, the music shop.”

“Oh, I see.”

She knew she wasn’t very good at holding a conversation. Normally, Black Star would just ramble over her anyway, or Tsubaki would sit with her in comfortable silence as they studied. She wanted to apologise, but how do you do that to someone who was completely uninvolved? _Sorry I approached you it’s just that I thought you were someone who had promised to come back to me twelve years ago but clearly you have no recollection of me my bad I’ll be gone now fare-_

Maka felt a tremble wrack her arms.

“Well, I had better get-”

Before he could finish his sentence, Maka grabbed his hand. Whilst he was sputtering, she glanced side to side, noticing the shadows had grown darker. Nodding to herself, she pulled him against her chest.

“Hold tight.”

She then jumped up high, before levitating above the building spires, walking in midair. Then she remembered the man that was currently clinging onto her.

“You can let go now.”

“Let go?! Are you crazy?!”

Maka frowned. “I should hope not, or you’d be falling out of the sky by now.” She continued walking whilst grappling with the man’s hands. “Come on, let go.”

Let go he did, only to grip at her hands. She was starting to have her doubts when she saw his eyes, but this pretty much confirmed her suspicions: this man didn’t know about Black Star, nor his promise to her. She sighed. Time travel was tricky business. There wasn’t much out there that could pull off a feat of twelve years: the pond in the castle’s garden, the diary in Medusa’s library, the door-

No.

“Woah woah woah, I’m falling, Lady! I’m falling!” The man’s exclamation pulled her from her thoughts, remembering that she was still levitating in the air. Taking a quick glance around, she got her bearings and slowly made her way to Evan’s, in kindness for the man in her hands. She took a deep breath, enjoying the cool fresh air. Market Chipping was close to the mountain side, right by the lake, yet the pollution from its famous train lines tainted the crisp scent of forest and dew. Maybe that’s why she’s flying so often: to get away from human disaster and corruption.

Isn’t that ironic.

The man continued to squirm in her arms, slipping enough times to irritate Maka.

“Stop that, just walk normally, won’t you?”

“Walk?! How, when there are no roads to take?!”

Maka gestured to herself, causing him to slip once again. “Just do as I do.”

He looked at her feet doubtfully, but followed her lead. He took one step. Then one step more. She hummed enthusiastically, to which he took confidence in, and started casually strolling in midair, as if he had done it his entire life.

They climbed up over a rooftop to the main town square before gently floating towards Evan’s. She took a quick peek down and was glad to see no pointing fingers; everyone was privy to their own business, not thinking to look up to see the two of them. The man then fastened his pace, surprising Maka as he almost ran towards the music shop, chuckling in delight. She smiled fondly at him, thinking back to when she also had the same adoration as he did in these party tricks.

Once they got to the second floor balcony, she gently lowered him down while she stood above him on the railings. She smiled at him and he smiled back, time freezing around them. Nothing else mattered other than this. This was-

Suddenly, Maka felt shivers trail down her spine. She whipped her head around, spotting Medusa’s grotesque slaves slithering across the street like snakes, ducking into the shadows but gradually making their way towards her, towards Evan’s, towards **him**.

“Um, is there something wrong?” The white haired man asked.

Maka took in a shuddering breath. She needed to leave. Now.

“Stay here, stay safe.” She said, her back facing towards him. “Beware of shadows and,” she turned towards him, smirking, “don’t talk to strange women.” She turned around again to leave. “I’m sorry for getting you involved.” _With everything_.

She ran.

* * *

_Must protect Soul. At all costs. His spell is coming undone. I wonder if mine will too. Don’t think. Keep attacking. There are too many._

_Why is Papa still fighting? Why won’t Stein give up?_ _Using too much magic. What if I can’t be_ **_human_ ** _again? Will Soul hate me?_

_I want to hear his music, one last time._

 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
_Heart. Cold. Fire. Gone?_

_No. Hurt. Dark. Pain._

_Want. Home. Home?_

_Enemies. Gone._

_Hurt. Pain._

_Help._

  
  
  


_Door. Black._

_Promise._

_Wait._

 

 

_Come back._

 

“Maka.”

_Red. Safe._

“I’m sorry I took so long.”


End file.
